Retired school teacher spends money from his meagre savings to offer free education to children of primitive tribes in Jharkhand

Such is his love for educating those who cannot afford it easily that even after his retirement as a school teacher at the Scheduled Tribe Residential Girls High School in Chaibasa district of Jharkhand, Lobin Sabar has been giving free education to the children of primitive tribes in his village Sohda Sabar under Musabani Block of East Singhbhum.

Sabar had retired in February this year.

Initially he started to provide free basic education to the two neighbourhood children at his home but gradually the strength went up to 36, with children coming from all across the village. In the last nine months, things have changed and more and more people are requesting him to educate their children.

Sabar told a local newspaper, “ When I returned to the village after retirement in February this year, I observed that in spite of going to school, children in the village were busy playing on the streets and parents also were least concerned about it. When I asked the parents, they counter-asked what their children would do by going to the schools as they are destined to become farmers in future. I was really shocked to hear the answer and decided to do something for the community. I somehow succeeded in convincing parents of the two children in my neighbourhood and started giving basic education to them. Initially, no one paid heed to it but gradually others also started turning up with their children after watching the improvement in the two children with whom I started with.”

Now, he has 34 children in his class. They are regularly coming to his class from 8-10 am, he added. According to Sabar, it gives him immense satisfaction as he also has gone through similar hardship and even had to work as a daily wage labourer to pay his college fees. Somehow, hard work paid dividends and Sabar got the job of a teacher in Scheduled Tribe Residential Girls High School in Chaibasa.

Sabar added. “As I have seen very bad days during my childhood, I did not want children of my village to face similar circumstances and therefore, I decided to pay back to the society what I received from it by giving free education to the children of my village.”

Now Sabar is getting support from his niece Nilima Sabar who is pursuing her B.Ed. She is helping him out in conducting the classes.

Sabar said that initially he had to spend money from his savings to provide reading materials to the children, but now people are coming forward in his support. Mukhia(village Head) Sukurmani Hembrom is now providing some teaching materials for the class.

Local public representatives have praised his efforts of lightening the lamp of education among the children of primitive tribes, who otherwise would have lost track due to lack of resources and awareness. “Lobin Sabar has succeeded in igniting interest towards education among the children and also creating awareness among their parents. Not only of Sabar community, but other children are also coming to his class,” Hembrom, the Mukhia says. “As he is committed towards improving condition of children of his community, he is educating children free of cost spending money from his own savings”, she added.